Ingredients:​

• 200g cholesterol spread (use it straight from the fridge as it will already be soft. It can get very, very soft when left at room temperature)

• 100g golden caster sugar

• 200g plain flour, plus extra for dusting the side (I do use white flour here, which is unusual! But I found it is just too mealy with wholemeal and loses the short delicacy it should have)

• 100g cornflour (makes it very melty in the mouth)

• Zest of 5 little clementines

Method:

• Heat the oven to 170 fan.

• In a big bowl, use an electric whisk or a mixer to beat the sugar and butter together until light and fluffy.

• Sift in the flour, cornflour and then sprinkle in the zest. Use one hand to gently combine the mix until it's a silky dough. Don't overwork it though or your shortbreads will be bendy and chewy. 

• Sprinkle some flour on the side and roll out the dough until about 5-7mm thick. Cut out little festive shapes and lay on a parchment lined baking tray.

• Prick the shapes with a fork to stop them puffing up and chill on their sheets in a fridge for about half an hour. 

• Bake them for about 20 minutes. They may start to go a bit golden on the edges but you don't want them to colour too much.

• Sprinkle some more sugar over the top and leave to cool on their sheets. When they've firmed up a bit, plonk them on a wire rack to cool completely.

• These will go beautifully with my Christmas Eve recipe...